Dark Contracts
by Chibi-Reaper
Summary: Basically the well used plot device thingy of having Genma arrange different marriages for Ranma... but different. For one, he's technically not engaged to any of the Tendos.
1. Chapter 1

Genma groaned as he slowly sat up and cradled his head. It felt like a thousand angry hornets were gnawing out the inside of his skull.

Personally, he felt that those monks had just gone a little bit too far. He hadn't intended to steal the statue, he just wanted a better look at it. Honestly. Besides, it was far too unique to trigger his larcenous tendencies. Where would he sell it? He wouldn't be able to. As such, there would be no point.

The monks, however, hadn't given him the chance to explain that to them, instead mobbing him with rakes and garden equipment and knocking him out. He'd woken up just in time to see the swirly portal they were throwing him through, and hitting the ground.

What little he'd heard of the chanting, however, had been quite ominous. The words 'demon', 'portal', and 'hell' had been repeated multiple times. Genma paused for a moment to think, something he rarely did, and broke out in a cold sweat.

"The monks sent me to hell..."

"Close, human, but not quite."

Genma leapt into the air, spinning and coming down on one foot in a position that was a perfect blend of offense and defense.

"Interesting..."

The blue haired man... no, now that Genma looked close it was obvious that he wasn't human, though what he was eluded him... he stepped from the shadows and grinned at Genma as he withdrew a European rapier and held it in a fencing position.

"You would fight me, Human?"

Genma didn't bother to reply, instead leaping into battle, doing his best to avoid the dangerous slashes and deadly thrusts of his opponent.

"You're good, human."

It wasn't long until Genma made a mistake though... he slipped too far into offense and left a small hole in his guard.

"But not good enough."

Genma slowly looked down to where the rapier had pierced his stomach, and exited through his back. Slowly, it all went dark.

xxx

Genma gasped as he sat straight up, eyes wide, and his hand went to this stomach. There was no wound, and the skin was unmarked. Had it been a dream? No... it had been too real, and he didn't recognize where he was.

"So you're finally awake. The healer was worried that you might not... wake that is. You are fortunate indeed that I did not use Longinus. He would have likely chosen to destroy your soul as he pierced your flesh, and then you would have been beyond her reach."

The blue haired demon, for what else could he be, stepped into Genma's field of vision and smiled.

"I am King Krichevskoy, Overlord and absolute ruler of the Netherworld. And you, human?"

"... Genma Saotome." And then, because a spark of pride demanded he match the demon with his full title. "Master of the Saotome section of the Anything Goes school of martial arts."

Krichevskoy arched an eyebrow, not at all impressed.

"Well Genma, now that you've awakened, you have a choice to make. You can leave my castle, and wander around my lands for however long it takes for a demon that is not as kind as I to kill you in battle. You can stay here, and serve me as one of my warriors, and I will be obliged to keep you fed and in reasonably good health. Or, if you can think of something that would make the expenditure of energy worth my while, I can open a portal that would return you to your home."

Genma's eyes widened as he considered it.

"Home... but what could you want from me? I'm not a rich man..."

"I have more money that you could possibly imagine, so it wouldn't matter if you were."

"... What do demons want. Souls?"

"Ew. What would I do with it? They're somewhat useless."

"Hmm... It's a pity. I can't think of anything, and so I'll be trapped in hell while my wife raises our son alone."

Something flashed in Krichevskoy's eyes, and he leaned forward.

"Fatherhood is indeed a blessing... I myself have a son, and a ward that I love like a daughter."

It took several minutes for Genma to connect the dots from that seemingly innocent statement, but after that a contract was swiftly drawn up that engaged the king's ward and Genma's son, and Genma was sent through a portal home, directly to his back yard.

He shook his head, knowing that it would be best to keep this little adventure to himself. He'd been on his way home after he and his buddy Soun had sealed the master into that cave when he'd stopped for the night at that monastery. Perhaps it would be best that he pretended nothing had happened, and head off to go get drunk with his old friend before taking his son on a training trip.

He nodded to himself as he walked in, announcing his presence to his wife as he opened the door. That was exactly what he would do.

xxx

He'd been excited when he remembered agreeing to join the schools sometime in the middle of the bar crawl. Then, after the alcohol induced stupor wore off, he remembered the previous agreement... and who it was made with. Then the panic set in.

He was already a week into the training trip with his son when he finally calmed down from his paranoia enough that he thought of taking a better look at the contracts.

The first one, the one with the demon King, was straightforward and clearcut. Etna and Ranma. Matrimony. The second... well it was obvious that both of them had been drunk when they wrote it. It meandered on and on, there were loopholes everywhere, and it never actually came out and said anything about marriage. It just stated that 'the schools would be joined'. That could mean any number of things. Which was probably _why_ the denizens of hell weren't hounding him this very moment for breaking a contract.

He carefully hid away the contracts under the false bottom of his travel pack, and decided to continue the trip. Tendo would understand that it was misunderstanding, that he had in his drunken state he hadn't made it clear that he had meant uniting the schools through means other than marriage... wouldn't he?

xxx

Years passed, and Genma swiftly taught his son almost everything he knew, and everything they came across that was deemed useful to their art. The boy was a prodigy, and absorbed anything related to martial arts like a sponge.

And on the course of the trip, Genma had collected a number of other contracts.

It was really rather disgusting. Rather than giving the penniless martial artists a meal for free in exchange for stories of their travels, the way Genma recalled things working in his youth, when he himself had been on a training trip with his own father, everyone demanded that he sign a contract with them in exchange for a single meal, sometimes as skimpy as a small bowl of rice, two slices of pickle, and an anchovy.

Fortunately, he had been able to write easily exploited loopholes into the contracts, or write the terms using very ambiguous phrases. Even after so long, he was terrified of Krichevskoy, who he had come to realize had toyed with him during their battle. He could have ended it at any time. As such, he was extremely wary of making agreements that contradicted the one with the dangerous King.

Of course, there were times that he simply had no other choice. Like when he'd come across an artifact that the Master had mentioned multiple times, usually in a tone of absolute longing. Genma had never understood why, until he touched the thing. Even after so long, he had yet to learn when to keep his fingers to himself.

And so he found himself inside a furo filled with nubile women who were obviously not human. After the obligatory beating, followed by an explanation, they had been ready to send him home... but his wallet had fallen out and dropped a picture of his son to the tile floor. And was picked up by a woman with two sets of wings, on her lower back and head.

Said woman turned out to be very important. Said woman had a younger sister. Said woman decided her younger sister and this boy would make a good match. In her words, 'They'd look cute together'. Things became very complicated, and even more so once he finally came into the knowledge that said woman and sister were succubi, and the only reason that the older woman hadn't decided to share his son with her sister was that she was already promised to another, a powerful vampire.

So after he was returned to the site of the artifact, he was carrying a _second_ contract that he didn't dare break, along with the dozens that had been made with greedy vendors for a quick meal. Ranma was eight at that point, and easily half as powerful as his father without the sealed techniques. It was time to move on from Japan, and begin searching other countries for things to teach his son.

xxx

More years passed, until Ranma reached the age of fourteen. He had grown more powerful... but then, his father had been in intense training as well, and had even begun to lose a little of his girth. Although it was difficult to tell, behind the small layer of fat was layer upon layer of iron hard, corded muscle. He could block blades by flexing those muscles at this point. Call him paranoid, but he still had nightmares about looking down to see a sword stuck in his gut. Not fun.

And he had picked up more contracts, eventually forcing him to buy a bigger pack to make room for a larger space beneath a false bottom. Through sheer good fortune, he hadn't picked up any more contracts with people he was too scared of to offend by 'fixing' the contract, but he had come to regret a recent choice he had made regarding which road to follow on a hike through the United States. The two of them had ented up getting caught in a storm, and having to find a place to take shelter from the elements.

That was how they met the Addamses. And a more terrifying family he had never come across. Naturally, Ranma, having grown up on the road with him, had no idea that there was anything wrong with them.

Naturally, the Saotome charm kicked in at exactly the wrong time, and the daughter of the deranged family sprouted a huge crush on Ranma... they discovered this because, every morning, there would be a heart nailed to Ranma's door with a silver dagger. A cow's heart, but a heart all the same. The truly disturbing thing was that he had overheard the parents arguing about it. The husband held that, as the male, it was Ranma's place to nail hearts to their daughter's door. The wife argued that he should accept that as time passed, certain roles were beginning to reverse.

Genma had snatched his son and fled long before they finished their discussion, but still, every so often they would wake to find a heart nailed to their motel door, or in front of the flap to the tent. There was no formal contract, but the girl was persistent, and either a good tracker or had enough money to hire the best.

So, probably safe to say that he wouldn't easily be rid of Wednesday Addams.

He sighed as he rolled over and did his best to sleep while keeping an ear open... trained ninja had tried and failed to sneak into the Saotome camp, but the Addams girl managed it every time. Frankly, it scared the shit out of him in a way that even raw, bloody hearts couldn't anymore.

Etna, the demon king's ward. Lilith Aensland. Wednesday Addams. Idly he wondered what would happen if the three met... then broke out into shivers. Even having only met one of the three, he was sure that _even if_ they didn't bring their elders into things, they were scary enough that under normal conditions he would want no part of them. Wednesday nailed hearts to doors, Lilith was a succubus, and Etna had been raised by the demon king of hell.

The boy was definitely going to hate him when he found out about all this. Still, no need to worry... tomorrow was a big day.

He'd finally tracked down the location of Jusenkyo.

xxx

A.N. Actually, I've had this finished for a while, but never got around to posting it for whatever reason. Sorry!

Anyway, this stories inspiration came from reading one of Shade's private bets... cant remember which one just offhand though. Also, considering different curses for Ranma... Genma will still be a panda. Has to be something that wouldn't power him up too much though, or at least something that he would really have to work at learning how to use to its full potential.


	2. Chapter 2

Ranma's eyes were still wide as he sank beneath the surface. Who could blame him? After all, when he'd smacked his father into one of the many pools of water, he'd expected him to jump right back out, only slightly soggy. Instead, when a giant panda weighing at least a ton leapt out, landing delicately on top of one of the bamboo shafts, he'd been understandably surprised and turned his head away to ask the guide just what the hell was going on.

The panda had taken the opening and blindsided him.

And now, despite being a strong swimmer, he was sinking to the bottom of this pool... and something about his body felt wrong, but for some reason he couldn't see through the murky water to find out what it was.

His flailing hand came into contact with something. A rock? No... a bone. More bones. Then something else... rotten fabric... the clothes of whoever had drowned here. A shudder went through his spine as he jerked his hand away, knocking something as it passed. His hand closed around it involuntarily, and he began to rise back to the surface of the pool.

xxx

"Growf!"

"Mr Customer fall in spring of drown Panda. Very tragic story of Panda who drown in spring one thousand two hundred year ago."

"Growf... GROWF!"

"Oh, young Mr Customer? He fall in spring of... spring of... one moment, must check guidebook... Ah, here is. Young Mr Customer fall in spring of blonde girl who fall in spring five year ago while chasing dangerous monster."

"Growf?"

"No, remember quite clear that girl was one who do the chasing."

Ranma surfaced, taking a deep, gasping breath and interrupting their conversation as _she_ slowly clambered out of the pool, dragging a picnic basket in one hand. She looked up and snarled, lunging for them but failing to take her new body into account and slammed face-first into the ground.

"Perhaps it be best we take young Ms Customer inside and make young Mr Customer again before explain."

"... Growf?"

Genma didn't really get it, but 'Make young Ms Customer into young Mr Customer again' sounded promising. Also, the deep pools of overwhelming rage that had shown through his son's eyes hinted that his waking up in a bed rather on the muddy ground would do a great deal towards prolonging his lifespan.

The basket was left by the pool, water slowly draining out, and neither of them noticed the way Ranma's shadow had begun to writhe.

xxx

Rage. Hatred. But... what was he so angry at?

An image appeared in his mind. Some sort of huge dog... wolf... but like no other wolf he'd ever seen before, and he'd seen quite a few. A cross between a wolf... and a man. A word filtered through his mind. _Werewolf_. His rage redoubled, and he felt himself snarling, thrashing about, desperately trying... _needing_ to kill the werewolf.

Panic began to set in as the image of the werewolf faded away and he realized that something was tangled around him. His eyes snapped open.

And he fell out of bed onto the floor.

"Oh, so young Mr Customer is finally being awake, then."

Ranma groaned as he slowly sat up.

"... Head hurts. Where's pops?"

The guide paused, then lifted his hand to point at the panda sitting patiently in front of the stove, waiting for a kettle of water to heat.

"WHAT! You gotta be out of your..."

'Sorry, boy,' read the sign the panda had just lifted to interrupt his son with, spinning it to continue on the back 'but it's all true.'

Ranma could only stare as he absorbed this. The sight of the panda pouring a cup of water over its head and turning into his pops seemed to snap him out of his dazed state.

"I... I don't get it. Just a splash of water, and he turned into... what did I turn into then? I don't remember..."

"I am afraid, young Mr Customer, that you fall into one of Jusenkyo's many Nyanniichuan spring. This particular spring is of girl who drown only five year ago. As such, is much stronger than other Nyanniichuan."

"Stronger? Drowned girl spring..."

Ranma looked down at his chest, noticably male, and sagged in relief.

"Wait, I get it. It's just temporary... thank kami, for a moment you two had me really worr..."

He was interrupted by the guide sadly shaking his head.

"So sorry, young Mr Customer. I try to warn, but Jusenkyo always takes those it desires. Curses can be nullify temporarily with hot water, but there is no cure. Next time cold water touch, curse become active again... and if Jusenkyo decide you not spending enough time under curse, will make cold water touch. Roof spring leak, water pipes break, water fall from nowhere, send hurricane and monsoon to the cursed sometimes too."

"... WAIT A MINUTE! POPS! DID YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS!"

"YOU KNOW I CAN'T READ CHINESE, DON'T BLAME ME!"

"YOU** IDIOT**!"

Several minutes and much arguing later, Ranma had finally cooled off enough to remember the rest of what the guide had said.

"Hey... you said something about the curse on the spring I fell into being stronger than the others. How so?"

"Oh! I am impress young Mr Customer! Most people never asking about the curses themselves... instead they only ask about cures, and become upset when discovering there are none."

The guide took a deep drag from his pipe before continuing, Ranma waiting impatiently for answers and even Genma looking slightly interested.

"Curse of spring strength is determine by how many years have pass since something drown in spring. If something drown in spring, and next day someone fall in, they come out as perfect match of what drown physically and mentally. Will look, act, and believe themself to be what drown in spring. As time pass, curse grow weaker... quickly at first, but slow down very fast. After a year, personality of drown victim still there, but no longer completely override real personality. A voice in head, and can drive cursed ones crazy."

He took another drag from his pipe. By this time Ranma was openly fascinated, and Genma was subtly craning his neck to hear more.

"After five year, personality of drown one is mostly gone, and memories have begun to fade. After ten, is completely gone, and memories are mostly faded. Long time after that, one hundred years after drowning, memories would be completely gone, and cursed one no longer look exactly the same as drown victim. After very long time, one thousand years pass, all specifics fade from spring and cursed one sometimes only look barely similar to what drown in spring. Instead, look like what would look like if born as what drown. Elder Mr Customer fall into spring where panda drown one thousand two hundred year ago. He look like what he would look like if born panda, but nothing else. His mind still completely same, he have no skill at truly being a panda. No Memories, or leftover panda-mind. He stand on two legs like man, walk like man... is not good. Pandas not made to walk long on hind legs, will slowly damage self if try. Elder Mr Customer will have to learn how to be panda when panda."

This time when the guide paused, it was to glance at the two martial artists faces. The elder was discomfited, obviously unhappy with what he'd been told. And the younger was obviously anxious, worried about what he was going to hear.

"You, young Mr Customer, fall in spring where girl drown only five year ago. Personality of girl mostly gone, but some overwhelming traits remain. Memories still there but difficult to get at, especially in uncursed form. If she was good at something, a little might carry over. Also... I am thinking she was not a normal girl."

"Oh? What makes you say that?"

The guide lifted a hand, pointing to the wall opposite from the fireplace. Their heads turned to the wall, where the shadows of the guide and Genma were sitting still, just normal shadows.

Ranma's shadow had begun playing solitaire sometime during the explanations. It lifted a hand and waved at them before turning its attention back to the cards. Genma was obviously spooked, and Ranma sported a small sweatdrop.

"Okay... Wait, I don't get this. If the moving shadow thing is something to do with the curse, but I'm a guy right now, when why...?"

"Not know. Nothing like this happen before, in all time that Jusenkyo exist and have guide. Must remember to make note of this in journal, is almost as interesting as what I read in predecessor's journal of man who try to cure curse by jumping into Nanniichuan."

"And what happened to this man?" Genma interrupted.

"As I say, is no cure for Jusenkyo. Adding another curse only make things worse. Instead of turning into bat, he turn into half man, half bat monster. He flee Jusenkyo in panic... I think Amazons kill him. If not them then Musk or Pheonix."

Ranma, who'd closed his eyes to concentrate better, ignored the two as he delved into his mind, sifting through what was his and what wasn't. The first thing he found was obvious. An irrational, nearly overwhelming malevolent hatred towards werewolves. There was some small dislike for other... Darkstalkers? as well, but even thinking of werewolves threatened to dump him into a seething torrent of rage. If he were ever to come into contact with such a creature, he was uncertain he would be able to hold himself back from attacking it.

It was scary. If this was faded, then what had the girl been like when she was alive? The rest of what was left of the girl's personality was miniscule at best. A slight attachment to the basket, a teensy desire to wear a red cloak and hood, and a slight, nagging urge to start tracking down bounties on these 'Darkstalkers'.

Now for the memories.

After a moment, he realized the guide had been correct... It was incredibly difficult to find any of the girl's memories, and even once he'd found them they were covered in a thick shroud... he could make out the tiniest hints of sound and sights, but could see nothing more.

Then the mental dam broke to his relentless pressure, flooding every memory to him at once. His eyes snapped open to their widest point as he paled and dropped off his chair and onto his knees.

"Ranma? What's wro..."

He was interrupted by Ranma vomiting on the ground. Loudly. He expelled everything in his stomach, and then continued heaving afterwards even with nothing left to purge.

"Oh dear. I fetch mop."

Ranma was too sunk into the memories to answer.

It was horrible and gruesome. This girl... she called herself a bounty hunter. That was one thing, and some of the creatures in the memories deserved to be hunted down and exterminated, for sure...

But then there were the ones who didn't. Beings that had simply tried to blend into human society as best they could, meaning no harm to the people around them. Beings that lived in the wilderness, and would actively avoid humans. Newborn creatures, that couldn't have possibly done any wrong in their short span of life. Entire enclaves of creatures that might have fed off of humans now and then to continue their own existence, but had taken care to never kill those they fed off of... slaughtered like animals.

Not just slaughtered, but taken and butchered, and their parts sold to eccentric 'collectors' and scientists as 'specimens'. Even one instance where she had gone out of her way to capture an infant and sell it to a scientist to experiment upon while it still lived. As far as the memories went, it was probably still alive somewhere... even if it would prefer to be dead.

He couldn't take it. The memories, they were... so much blood...

He lost consciousness.

xxx

In the darkness, there was something. A shape... a figure... a person. Dark hair, pulled into a ponytail... no.

It was him. But he was there, and he was there, so who was he and he was who? The figure that seemed to be him but could not be, yet was, turned and gave a familiar grin. Rain fell, and that familiar face and body shrank and shifted and changed until a blue eyed blonde stood in front of him, wearing his gi and smiling. Then the gi itself changed, shifting and swelling until it became a red cloak and hood covering the girl in her entirety below her neck and the upper half of her face.

The smile never changed, not even slightly, but the darkness seemed to draw closer, draw nearer, and enwrap them both. She began to drift forward, and Ranma began to stumble back, more terrified of this one, small girl than any number of demons from the deepest, darkest, most fiery pits of the damned.

There were no walls in the darkness, and yet as he stumbled back, he drew up against something that prevented him from retreating further, even as the smiling, cloaked girl drew ever nearer. He wanted to close his eyes, but couldn't, couldn't blink, couldn't move, couldn't _breathe_ as this apparition finally came to a stop, less than a centimeter ahead of him. For a moment, it was like existence itself was watching, and waiting, to see what happened next in this darkness.

Then she slowly drifted forward once more, through him... _into_ him. It felt... there was no way to truly describe it, but the closest analogy would be that his very soul had been compressed, to allow something else to take hold of it and share the space it should occupy. Perhaps, eventually, one would manage to expel the other. Perhaps his soul and the other that was not would become something like roommates, accepting each others presence. Perhaps they would merge, and become one. Ranma didn't know any of these possibilities... couldn't know them. All he knew was overwhelming pain. A soul was not something that could naturally be meddled with.

But after a time, minutes or hours or decades, he could not tell, he rose from his convulsions and stood again, only shivering lightly. There was a mirror before him, and he saw himself for a moment, shuddering with the effort of standing, and then... a cast came over his reflection and he saw her, still smiling.

He awoke, screaming.

xxx

A.N.

Wow. This turned way different from what I'd expected, really fast. All I wanted was someone who could improve Ranma enough that he could keep up with his fiancees, but not make him _too_ powerful, and I came up with an answer. B.B.Hood, of Darkstalkers.

Of course, once I had made the decision, the plot flatly refused to develop the way I wanted it to. After a few false trys and frustration, I eventually decided to give up, let the plot go the way _it_ wanted to, and work around it afterwards. And so came this. Most of it was fine, but the last chunk... that was a bit more out there than I was hoping for. Still, this was a very difficult chapter to finish, so I'll just leave it as is and see how this develops. Usually this sort of thing ends up working out better than I could ever have planned it anyway... (shrugs).

Right then... back to 'Towers'!


	3. Chapter 3

When he woke in the morning, he was wrapped in a red cloak and hood. Neither the guide nor Genma could explain where it had come from.

He'd burned it immediately.

Three days later, only a day after they left the Amazon village, he woke in the campsite with the same cloak wrapped around him. He burned it again.

Then two days later, every morning for a week, he woke wrapped in the cloak. He burned it every time. Then they reached the coast and stowed away in a ship for a few days to get back to Japan. The first morning after their arrival, he woke with a hooded red leather trenchcoat covering him in place of a blanket. He gave up and slipped it on over his clothes.

It was waterproof. That was nice. Kept the pouring rain off, for one. Pity that Genma wasn't smart enough to get an umbrella or something... wet panda fur smelled like week old dung.

xxx

"He's coming! Oh happy day!"

Seems things still haven't been explained to Soun yet.

"What? FIANCE?"

And he's just making things worse... lets skip ahead a little... doop-de-doo.... Ah, here we go.

"That's fascinating Saotome. Jusenkyo... the pools of sorrow. It's incredible to see. And your son is cursed as well?"

Soun tossed a cup of drinking water at Ranma's head. Ranma didn't even blink as Genma leapt in the way, catching the water and transforming into a panda in mid air.

"Growf." 'No need for that, old friend. My son is... touchy... about his curse.'

"I see... Still, no real trouble. These are my daughters... Kasumi, age nineteen..."

'Soun?'

"Nabiki, age seventeen..."

'Old buddy, are you paying attention to me?'

"And Akane, age sixteen. Choose the one you want, and she will be your... bride? Er... Saotome?"

Genma and son answered as one.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

'What are you talking about, Soun?'

Akane, about to do something rash, paused. The younger Saotome.... what she could see of his face seemed honestly confused. And while she wasn't yet skilled at making out the differences in the facial expressions of pandas, his father seemed puzzled as well.

"Why... the agreement, Saotome! You remember, don't you? To unite the schools through the marriage of our children?"

Genma frowned and poured some hot water over himself as he began digging through his pack. After a moment, he withdrew a yellowed piece of paper and brought all of his surprisingly considerable acting skills to the fore. His brow furrowed as he reread the contract.

"Soun... not once in our contract is a union of marriage specified. Also... the details of that night of celebration _are_ somewhat hazy, I'll admit, but I don't recall any mention of marriage then either..."

"Well how would you join the schools otherwise?"

"The traditional way! I teach my boy everything I know and then some... you teach one of your daughters everything you know and then some... and then the two train each other!"

Nabiki had long since snagged the contract and begun looking it over as Kasumi sipped at tea and Akane stared at the intensifying argument.

"He's right you know. Nothing about marriage ever comes up in this. Theres a lot about 'Joining the schools', some drivel about 'The hated Grandmaster, finally sealed away for the good of the world' and something about 'The two, bound as brothers through shared torments', but nothing about marriage _ever_ comes up."

"Then... this is all just a big misunderstanding?"

"Oh my... the tea is gone. Excuse me."

The argument seemed to be at the point where it would come to blows, but Soun suddenly started bawling at the top of his lungs and tackle-hugged his old friend, apologizing deeply and sincerely for his mistaken assumptions. In the deluge of tears, Genma shifted to a panda again.

"Well that's settled, and everythings done, so..."

"Not quite." Ranma interrupted, standing up slowly. "There's still one more thing to deal with. Now... which of you is the heir to the Tendo Ryu?"

He snorted and grinned.

"Whichever it is, meet me in the Dojo. Gotta say I'm impressed though... it takes a _really_ high-class martial artist to conceal their presence to the point that you can't tell them from your average guy off the street. This might be fun..."

Akane stared for a moment as he left, then started scowling as what appeared to be red flame began crackling around her.

"Why that... that... did he call me weak? I'll KILL him!"

xxx

Five minutes later Akane had switched out her clothes for a gi, and was sneering at her opponent, who hadn't bothered. This would be over in no time.

Little did she know that Ranma was thinking the same thing about her.

"Now Ranma, this is for the union of the schools, so don't toy with her! This isn't playtime! Also, this _is_ just a friendly sparring match, to test her level relative to yours, so no Forbidden techniques-"

"-no crippling moves, no maiming strikes, no breaking bones, and no 'fighting dirty'. I get it... you run through this every time."

"That's because I can never tell if you need it or not! That curse is fiddling with your self-control. Remember in China?"

"I was having a bad day. And to be fair, she _did_ try to stab me in my sleep."

"You still went overboard! All you had to do was knock that Shampoo girl out, and we could have gotten away again, just like all the other times before. Instead, you-"

"I told you... I was having a bad day. I _could_ have just shot her."

"And that's another thing... no guns. I can't imagine why you even have such things."

"Ace in the hole. Some of the things I remember Riding Hood hunting had acidic blood, or were poisonous to the touch. Now that I look like her part of the time, there's no guarantees that something with a grudge won't hunt me down, and I don't feel like watching my arm sizzle off."

Genma just grunted... the boy had a point. People had long memories... monsters probably did too.

"Still-"

"I get it, I get it. Don't worry, she won't end up in the hospital. I'll just humiliate her instead."

Genma frowned, but that was really the best he could do.

"Ready.... Fight!"

The two combatants stared at each other for a moment. Akane had fallen into her traditional stance, and Ranma still hadn't removed his hands from his pockets. Then he broke the silence.

"Interesting... a few minor variations to a basic Kempo stance. You sacrifice a little defense in the front to increase defense on the sides and rear and maximize the power you can put into your attacks. And you chose this stance automatically, out of reflex. Not the best for one on one combat... but against a large group of less skilled enemies? It's perfect, in that regard. Tell me... do you fight off mobs often?"

Akane flinched as if struck at the accuracy of his description and both of Nabiki's eyebrows rose. He could tell all that at a glance?

"The problem though, is that while such a stance is useful against multiple, weaker opponents... against a single, stronger one, or even one that is just equal to your level, it falls woefully behind."

"Sh-Shut up! I'm the best martial artist in Nerima!"

Ranma nodded.

"Good thing to know that you have confidence in yourself... but I'm not from Nerima. I'm an unknown quantity. You might be better than me... or you might not. Overconfidence will be your downfall."

"Enough talk, time to fight! Kyaaa!"

Akane rushed forward in a full frontal attack, rattled enough to drop all semblance of defence in favor of offense. Ranma sighed and stepped to the side, extending one foot. Akane tripped over it and went flying into the wall.

"That... no fair! I wasn't ready!"

"Then you should wait to attack until you _are_ ready. Patience, girl. We've got all day."

"I'll show you!"

Whack!

Akane had run straight into Ranma's fist, and stumbled backwards with the beginning of a nosebleed.

"My arms and legs are longer than yours. Weave around my defense, don't try to crash through it."

"Why you...!"

Ranma caught her clumsy punch and flipped her over to crash into the floor.

"Control your outbursts... use no more force than is neccessary. Force can be redirected and used against you, turning you into your own greatest enemy. This is all groundwork you should have covered years ago. Are you _sure_ you're the Tendo heir?"

Akane snarled as she got up from the ground, wobbling slightly.

"You know, you should just stay down. I've already learned everything about your fighting style that there is to know, unless you've been holding back something special. No need to continue this farce."

"I won't lose to you!"

"You already have."

"DIE!"

Akane charged forward like a rampaging bull. Ranma sighed and seemed to drift forward like a ghost to meet her. His speed was revealed as her strike passed through an afterimage and he continued to drift past her.

She couldn't move... all her muscles had locked up.

"I just struck no less than thirty-seven of your muscle paralysis points. It'll wear off in about an hour. Until then, just sit tight and let the adults talk business."

"Um.... Winner, Ranma Saotome."

Akane fumed but couldn't say anything, as her mouth was locked shut. That... that cheater!

"I must say Tendo... I'm a little dissappointed in the quality of your student."

"I apologize old friend. Due to my, ah, misunderstanding of the details of the union between our schools, I may not have trained her as intensively as I should have. It is entirely my fault..."

"No no, old friend. This... er... problem is not insurmountable. I'm sure with a little more intensive training, your girl will easily be able to match my son."

Privately, Soun doubted it. The boy already displayed skill outpacing him at his _best_... and he'd been getting slowly out of shape ever since the master had been sealed away. He hadn't even taught since his wife had died.... though it wasn't completely from lack of trying. He'd just given up after a while.

"Are you... sure that the schools cannot be joined through marriage."

"Positive. I'm sorry Tendo.... even if it were possible, the boy has... prior arrangements. My hands are tied."

"This is the first I heard of this, Pops."

"And just how would I have brought it up? Oh, yes, 'Loosen your guard, put a little more power in those strikes, and by the way boy, I've been meaning to tell you that you've been engaged since before you were born'. There was just no real opportunity."

"Huh... guess that makes sense."

"In any case, Tendo... Might I prevail upon you for a room for a night or two? Just until we find an apartment, of course."

xxx

Ranma didn't like the Tendo place much. The patriarch, Soun, broke into crying fits at apparent random and when he did he released enough tears to activate Genma's curse, which meant that it could activate his. That was a big black mark against him. The eldest daughter seemed to have retreated from reality the moment the curse was revealed, the middle daughter kept sending calculating looks his way that sent eerie chills down his spine, and the youngest was quite frankly borderline psychotic.

The sudden revelation his father had let slip about 'prior arrangements' had fouled his mood as well, and the fact that they'd bundled the two of them into the same room for the night had only worsened things. Ever since the curse, he'd tried to make sure that there was a certain amount of distance between their sleeping spaces, as there was a tendency for at least one of them to get soaked in the night and-

The door creaked as it slowly slid open, distracting him as he cracked an eyelid to check... the middle daughter. And she had....

Nabiki hefted the bucket of water with a smirk.

"Well now, Ranma-kun... let's see what that curse that you're so touchy about is. Just a little cold water, and-"

Ranma sat up in bed and hurled a handful of throwing knives at the bucket, slashing it open in a half dozen places and spilling the water all over the floor, before slumping back to the ground- apparently without having woken up.

"..... Or, you know, I could leave our guests their privacy." Nabiki mumbled, apparently shaken, before stepping back and sliding the door closed. Ranma smirked and allowed himself to drift off to slumber.

The next morning, Genma had yet another irritating announcement.

"School? Why do I have to go to-"

"Everyone has to go to school boy. You have to get an education sometime."

"I don't need an education! In case you didn't notice..." Ranma paused and glanced around for listeners before continuing. "Little Red had college degrees... multiple. And guess whose memories are stuffed into my brain."

Genma hesitated as he considered that, then shook his head.

"Well... you'll have no trouble making top of your class then. Besides, now that we aren't moving around any more we have truant officers and law enforcement to worry about."

"Oh... point to you. I guess I really don't have much of a choice then."

Genma nodded, once more marveling at how the curse had made his son both more and less rational at the same time.

"It's the same one that Soun's younger daughters attend. One of them will show you the way. Besides that..." Genma took his turn checking for eavesdroppers. "You remember what the guide said about the curse. When was the last time yours activated? If you don't change and spend some time in your other form soon..."

"I know, I know. Sheesh. I was going to do it today... but it looks like I'll have to put it off until after classes."

"Will you be back in time for dinner?"

"Hmm... difficult to say. Depends on how far I have to go to find a street fight that lets the competitors make bets. Since I assume that I'm going to be the one paying for the apartment you mentioned looking for the other day?"

Genma nodded and, in an unprecedented show of generosity, handed Ranma a thousand-yen bill.

"Keep that in reserve for food, and you can pay me back after you win your match."

Ranma nodded and tucked it away before looking out the window and flipping up his hood.

"But it looks like rain today. Seems like I'll have to be extra careful-"

"Saotome! I need to get going, so either come now, or wait for Akane. She'll walk you to school."

"'Walk me to'? I'm not some little kid, y'know. Just give me the adress and I can get there fine. Besides... I just plain don't like your sister that much, Nabiki."

"Oh? Most of the boys at school are hopelessly obsessed over her."

Ranma snorted as he rose.

"Can't imagine why. She's spoiled, violent, not anywhere near as dedicated to the martial arts as she likes to pretend, and while she's cute, she's nowhere _near_ attractive enough to outweigh her faults."

"Wow... blunt. And harsh. A first, in many ways."

Genma hurled a pack to Ranma, who caught it easily.

"So, where is this school, then?"

xxx

"Geeze... it's so dusty in here. Why are we doing this again, Prince?"

"Hmph. Like I said before, it came to me the other day. As king of the underworld, the Overlord is an extremely diplomatic figure, who must maintain ties with every part of their Makai. As such, it's entirely possible that mairrages will be arranged to ensure cordial diplomatic relations. That's why we're here... to check and see if the old man made any deals like that about me before he died!"

"Yeah, I know that! What I meant was, why are 'we' doing this, instead of making the servants deal with it?"

"Hah! Mere servants cannot be trusted to deal with these matters correctly... and they can't keep their mouths shut for anything. Let's see... disregard anything more than half a century old... he would definitely have told me about it. The most recent files are in this drawer, so... Hmm. Drivel, drivel, little treaty, pointless political chatter... blah, freaking blah... Oh, there's an arranged marriage for you, Etna. More treaties... whew, I'm in the clear."

"Wait... _what was that_?"

"The treaties?"

"No, you moron of a prince! Before that!"

"Hm... oh yeah. Looks like your engaged to some mortal... paper's really recent. Looks like Pops had it drawn up just a few days before he croaked."

"Oh my, an arranged marriage! Good luck miss Etna, and I hope you grow to love your new husband!"

"_Shut up_! When the hell did you even get here anyway?"

"Hmm... Well as the Overlord, I definitely have to uphold my father's treaties and political arrangements. As such, I fully support you in your new relationship."

"She... you..." Etna growled and clutched at her spear. "Tch. This guy better be _damn_ cute."

xxx

"Ah... so she does fight off mobs often. I'd wondered."

"Every morning before school. Kuno-sempai set it up, claimed that if they beat her that they'd win a date... and the average Furinkan guy was just dim enough that they believed him. It's annoying, and none of them really stand a chance. At least in the beginning people would bet whether or not she could win, and who might beat her, but now it's gotten to the point that they only bet on how many seconds it'll take her to wipe the floor with them."

"Ha... making money off of your sister's misfortune." Ranma smirked. "You're a.... cold hearted bitch. Still... I suppose I owe your family a favor, for letting us stay at your dojo. Tell me... what are the odds of her being late for class?"

"Pretty long, something like 50 to one. She's not been late yet once. Wait..."

"Put me down for a thousand." He said, flipping the note to her. "By the way, I might be late for first period."

By the time Nabiki mentally calculated that despite the payout she'd have to give Ranma, she'd come out well ahead, he'd already made his exit to wait on top of the clock tower and watch for Akane's arrival. She didn't take long, and began to tear through the crowd like a mecanical reaper through a field of wheat, chanting something about how much she hated boys. He waited for her to finish before dropping down from the tower and cratering the steps into the school.

"Eh... Ranma, you?"

"You forgot already, Akane-kun? As per our familial agreement... I'm your sensei in the martial arts now. You will adress me as 'Sensei' during our lessons."

"What lessons? I'm just trying to get to class, you-!"

"Opening!"

Akane only barely dodged Ranma's attack by dropping to the ground and then rolling to the side do dodge his brutal follow-up.

"A lesson can come at any time or place, as can an attack! Having all your battles at the same time every day... it's too predictable, and you get used to the routine. But that's neither here nor there. If class is that important to you, you'll just have to get past me quickly! Better hurry though, the clock is ticking."

"Fine! I'll end this with one-"

Ranma kicked her in the face as she rushed forward blindly.

"You seem to have a real problem with your short term memory. If that tactic didn't work the first time, what would make you think that-"

"Hold, varlet!" a newcomer introduced himself, along with a swipe of his bokken. Ranma caught him by the arm and negligently hurled him at Akane, who swatted him out of the way with a backhand, directly into the school wall.

"Distractions to my lessons will not be tolerated! Now Akane, attack from whatever direction you please, and allow me to educate you on the flaws in your technique."

Above, the students were awestruck as they hung out the window.

"That guy... he took out Kuno like it was nothing."

"So strong..."

"Didn't he say that he was Akane's sensei?"

"Wow... Akane's already so strong. After being instructed by this guy, what will she...?"

"Noo!" The still-concsious members of the horde howled, as one.

"I'm gonna be late for class, you jerk!"

Ranma launched a kick at Akane's head.

"What part of 'Adress me as 'Sensei' during our lessons' fails to sink in, my impudent student?"

"I.... Will... NEVER call you sensei!" Akane proclaimed, dramatic announcement accompanied by the ringing of the school bell. "Now get out of my way before I'm late!"

Ranma smirked and blurred, then turned and walked into the school as Akane slowly toppled over.

"And so, our lesson comes to an end."

xxx

A.N.

Ha, not a dead-fic!

And so, the plot begins to progress.


	4. Chapter 4

"Nabiki Tendo! I must know, who is the impudent wastrel who this very morning hounded my darling Akane and interfered with the trial to determine the worthiness of suitors for the heart of my beloved? Who is the man that hides within the concealing coat and hood? I will pay any price for the information."

Nabiki carefully weighed the potentials for mischief against profit before answering.

"Fifty thousand yen."

"D-did I say any price? Such a sum for information..." He paused and shook his head. "Done."

She quickly counted and pocketed the money before continuing.

"Well, Ranma-kun's staying at our house for a while-"

"WHAT!? Under the same roof as Akane!?"

"Kuno-chan, if you don't quiet down you'll miss out. Anyway, there was a little misunderstood arrangement between our fathers. Daddy thought Ranma-kun was supposed to marry one of us."

"_**WHAT!?**_ Engaged to-"

A hand clamped down on Kuno's shoulder as Ranma, who'd entered at some point, loomed up behind him.

"You're overreacting, Upperclassman... Kuno, was it? Like Nabiki said, Tendo-dono misunderstood the nature of the agreement between our families. My relationship to Akane is no more than that of a teacher and his student, and I will be impinging on the Tendo's hospitality for only as long as it takes to locate suitable living space for myself within the district. Speaking of which... I trust your take this morning was sufficient, Nabiki?"

"Mmyah... your share. Don't blow it all in one place, Ranma-kun." Nabiki answerd, tossing the wad of bills Kuno had handed to her. Ranma easily plucked it out of the air and tucked it away, nodding.

"Guess I'll take a walk then... The instructor expected me to stand out in the hall and wait for him to let me back in, if you can believe it."

"Actually, Ranma-kun... that's a pretty standard punishment."

"Hmph. I can see that I haven't missed much, then. Punishing delinquents by forcing them to spend _less_ time in class... wonder who came up with that bright idea."

Ranma shrugged and opened the door to leave.

"Hold! I do not fully understand the situation... But you claim to be uninterested in the fair Akane, and will vacate the Tendo domicile upon locating alternate quarters?"

"Hmm... somebody doesn't listen well. But in short, yes."

"I... see. To claim indifference to the beauty of the fierce Tigress that is Akane Tendo… It is a near-unforgivable offense. Even so! The Kuno are merciful and beneficient... this once, and this once only, I shall allow the insult pass. Also, the Kuno are generous. I promise you this, Saotome… the entirety of my resources shall be devoted immediately to facilitating your removal from Akane's private residence!"

Ranma arched an eyebrow.

"Generous indeed. However, the Saotome have not fallen near so far as to accept the charity of strangers. Do not believe it unappreciated, but consider my pride, Kuno-sempai."

"Of… of course." Kuno said, suitably chastised. "I retract the offer."

Ranma nodded and opened the door, then paused a moment in thought.

"Actually, Kuno-sempai... there is one small favor I would ask of you. If we could speak in private...?"

Kuno nodded and stood, the teacher not bothering to even glance up or pause in his droning lecture. Nabiki's attempt to follow, on the other hand, was blocked with a stub of chalk to the forehead.

"Miss Tendo, thank you for volunteering to read the next passage aloud."

"I... but-! Tch."

The next passage took several minutes to read through, and as she sat down there was a chime over the school intercom.

"All students, please report immediately to the school auditorium. Repeat, all students report to the school auditorium for a motivational speech."

"Motivational speech?" Nabiki mumbled under her breath as the students all rose and obediently filed out of the classroom. Curious. The last time something like this had happened....

She smirked, sensing the potential for profit with a new situation.

xxx

"Hmm... a large crowd. Would you say that that's enough, Kuno-sempai?"

"Indeed. Most, if not all of the school seems to have gathered."

"Right. Time to get started, then..."

Ranma coughed into the microphone, silencing all idle chatter.

"Do I have everyone's full and undivided attention? Good, good. Now, it has come to my attention that there is a daily battle over my new student's affections. As her sensei I must say... It makes me absolutely **sick**!"

He slammed his hand into the podium for emphasis.

"Sick! Sick sick sick! I am feverishly and violently ill at the audacity of you half-trained simpletons! Listen now and listen well, for I will no longer tolerate this offense against the honor of my student... should you wish to challenge for her affections..."

He slammed the podium again, to interrupt the growls of discontent that had begun to erupt from the male portion of the student body..

"Then TRAIN! Train and train and train until your body gives out and you cannot move! Train in the mountains, wrestling wild boars! Train by the sea, against the crashing waves! Train in the wilderness and in the city alike! If you would challenge my student, then nothing else would do!"

A roaring howl of masculine approval at the challenge drowned out the cry of sudden dismay Akane let out.

"I... I SEE!" Kuno yelled, grabbing the mike away. "Saotome is correct! Akane Tendo! By this time next week, I swear that the Furinkan Kendo Club and myself will be twice... nay, THRICE as powerful as before! AhHAHAHAHA! Kendo Club, attend me!"

"Ranma you... you... You complete and utter BASTARD!"

"That's Bastard-_Sensei_ to you, student! MaHAhahaha! Hm... is that the time? Well in anycase, enjoy your schooling, Akane."

"You... you... you... Gragh! I'll KILL you!"

Ranma casually paralyzed Akane's arms before ambling out of the auditorium.

xxx

Lightning crackled in the clouds overhead as Ranma looked up from beneath his hood.

"Yeah, yeah... I get it. Time for the change."

He lowered his hood and waited, and was rewarded after a moment as water poured down and he shifted. Then he flipped the hood back up and continued on, ignoring the way it had shifted slightly to better fit his new form.

"Now... how to go about finding something suitable? Let's see.. Ah. 'That' will do."

"Hey... Hey, little girl! What do you think you're doing? You can't come in, this is a-urk!"

Ranma had casually jabbed the bouncer in the stomach and continued into the dimly lit bar as he crumpled to his knees.

"Hey. Bartender. A bottle of your best."

"Oh. And do you have any I.D. on you?"

Ranma slapped a five thousand yen note on the counter and the bartender nodded, tucking it into his apron.

"Will that be all, miss Red Hood?"

"For now."

Ranma settled into a corner table. Now the only thing left to do was to wait for the inevitable disturbance that would be caused by her mere presence. As calculated, she was accosted before she even managed to pour the first cup.

"Hey there girlie. This isn't the place for someone as cute as you. There's some really, heh, rough characters that frequent this place. It's just not safe, if you know what I mean. But come over and sit at my table, heh. I'll-uh.."

The bruiser trailed off as Ranma stood and smirked.

"Maaa... so you're the tough guy around here. Good. Now I know who to deal with. Tell me... where would I go to find a pit fight in this area?"

She was answered with a stupid sounding 'guffaw'.

"Pit fight? Cute little girlie like you? You gotta be kidding me... uh?"

Ranma lifted the man by his throat and hurled him bodily across the room.

"'Cute little girlie', eh? Let's see how cute I am when I beat you so hard _you vomit up your own liver_, dirtbag!"

"Ah... ah.... AAAH! Strong... unbelievably strong!"

"You better believe it. Now, tell me... while I'm still feeling slightly merciful."

"I'll tell! I'll tell! The nearest location I know of is..."

xxx

"Tch. I suppose I should have known that I'd have to walk a ways. Still... the next district over seems a bit much." Ranma sighed. "Still, my ammo supply is limited, so it's either walk or bank on not running into anything that I wouldn't want to hit. Hmm... and here we are."

Ranma knocked on the door of what appeared to be a warehouse. After a minute, a gravely voice called out from within.

"What's the password?"

"Password, huh? Let's try 'If you don't let me in, I'll make the short remainder of your life a living hell.' Does that work as a password for you?"

"Tch. Troublesome young whippersnappers. I'd like to see what you think you can do to me from the other side of that door, brat!"

Ranma fired a shot, and there was a moment of silence as he and the doorkeeper quietly observed the hole it had punched through it.

"Hmm... it seems someone didn't think to bulletproof this place. Let's try this again. This time, my password is 'I still have the rest of a clip loaded. How confident are you about dodging them all?'"

"Hmm... yes... Please, come right in."

Ranma ignored the mumbled diatribe about gun-wielding problem-children as the door opened, and he stepped through, into a dark hallway.

"With as unnaturally violent as you seem to be, you'll be wanting the door at the very end of the hall."

Ranma grunted and continued on. After a moment, the old man snickered under his breath.

"Hmm... or maybe the one at the very end is the one for veterans. Pity. An obvious amateur like her... well it'll certainly teach her to shoot at innocent old men."

The vindictive gatekeeper cackled again as he slid the door closed.

Meanwhile, Ranma had stepped into an enormous room filled largely with people in suits and large, shirtless men covered with scars and tatoos, both in unusual places.

"Maa... at first I was suspicious, but it looks like he sent me to the right room after all. Big bucks. Fun fights. No Pops around to blow it all for me. Heh."

"Is that... Bonnie? Why, Bonnie! What an unexpected pleasure for our paths to cross here, of all places."

Ranma glanced to the side. Unlike the majority of the suit-wearers in the room, the one that had just addressed her was remarkably non-greasy and his suit seemed tailored to fit correctly.

"Hm? We met?"

"Ah, dear me. Don't tell me you've forgotten the name of your supplier, Kouta Shuutaro! And after always coming through for you, even on those most unique of orders. I can still only imagine what purpose or beastie some of your special bullets could be put to."

Ah... so they _had_ met. Or rather, the man was an acquaintance of the drowned girl This could be a good thing, or a terrible one, depending on just how the dice fell.

"Although... you've certainly been out of touch for quite some time, Bonnie. Ever since a mark actually eluded you in the chinese wilderness, I hear."

"There... were complications." Ranma grudgingly offered after a slight hesitation.

"Must have been some complications to keep you, B.B. Hood of all people, from completing a contract. But, ah... this likely isn't the place for such discussions. Tell me, what brings you to a place like this?"

"... If you must know, I'm here to compete."

"Oh! Are you quite sure? I'm afraid that there are some restrictions on these matches that you may not be used to. Firearms are prohibited, for a start..."

"That won't be a problem." Kouta arched an eyebrow at the interjection, but shrugged it off.

"Hm... perhaps things have changed. However, you also need a sponsor to be allowed to compete. Hm.... Hahaha. Don't worry... I'll happily act as your sponsor, for oh... a fifteen percent share."

"Five."

"My, my... not even a moment of hesitation. But even for old friends, I can only go so far. Ten."

"Done. And use this to make bets on me." Ranma said, handing over twenty thousand yen of his remaining funds.

"Ho. But of course. Now, your first opponent..."

xxx

"It's _her_, alright. I know that face... it haunts my nightmares."

"But how? Gone for so long... Rumor had it that she was dead. She had to have been dead to go so long without hunting. To just show up, and in a place like this..."

"True, there are a great many oddities. Also, her main ability before was in her armaments... that was well known. The best odds for one of her marks was to quickly press a close range assault, then flee. It's how I got away, although she didn't seem to be after me specifically. Now, however..."

"Yes... so strong. It's horrifying. None of those men would be a match for us, but she tears through them as easily as we would."

"What do we do... what do we do?"

"No choice. We wait for her to tire, then strike after she leaves. Such a threat... Ha! And if we're the ones to end her, we'll be heroes!"

"If we screw up... we'll be dead."

"True. But on the other hand, when will another opportunity like this arrive?"

xxx

"Hm, Bonnie. I must say I am impressed... your take, minus my cut." Kouta handed over a fat envelope. "And also, I slipped in a card with my current locale of business. Do drop by sometime. I'll be eagerly awaiting your arrival."

Ranma tucked away the money and quietly left, intending to change back on the way to the Tendo place. It wasn't long, though, before he sensed a presence tracking him, and he turned off into an abandoned construction site.

"... So. Come out then... I can tell you're there. No point in trying to hide."

"I see-"

"Then we'll just-"

"-Have to kill you quickly!"

Two oni dropped into the area, every inch the image. Ridiculously overmuscled, furry loincloth, horns, fangs, and clubs- the works. In unison they lifted those spiked clubs and rushed forward, bellowing.

Roughly five and a half seconds later, the oni were left in a crumpled pile.

"Crap, we-"

"-Gambled it all, and-"

There was a long, drawn silence as they prepared for their inevitable fate. After a few minutes, they cracked their eyes open.

"Where'd she...?"

xxx

"Man... so pathetic. I almost feel sorry for those losers."

Ranma paid for some tea in a paper cup and walked a short way before pouring it over his head and tossing the cup aside.

"Meh... almost. Anyone that attacks me out of nowhere like that deserves anything they get. For a moment, I thought it was that Amazon again... that would have been a hassle and a half. Now... the Tendo place is..."

"Ah! It's so cute... Charlemagne! Give me my Charlemagne!"

Ranma frowned at the insistent tug on his hood. Attempting to ignore the distraction, he began a swift walk.

"Charlemagne! Give me my Charlemagne!"

The walk became a run as Ranma darted through crowds and between traffic to escape the annoyance.

"Charlemagne! Give me my Charlemagne! Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme!"

Unsuccessfully.

"Hey, brat! Go AWAY!"

"Ah... such a rude man has taken my Charlemagne!"

"It's _my_ coat!"

"I challenge you! When I win, you'll give me my Charlemagne!"

"Nothing doing. Besides, you never said what I would get if I won."

".... The event will be pair figure skating! I, Azusa Shiratori- Where are you going with my Charlemagne!?"

"I'm not interested!"

"Charlemagne! Charlemagne! Give me my-"

Ranma turned around and poked Azusa in the forehead.

"You know what? Wait here. I'll be back in a sec..."

Azusa, now thoroughly confused at the deviations from standard operating procedure, complied. Ranma nodded and stepped into a nearby shop. After a moment, he exited with a small parcel.

"Now, I'll tell you what. If you stop bugging me about my coat, I'll give you... _this_!"

Ranma dramatically withdrew a china dolly in a very pink dress from the parcel. In a way, it resembled Azusa herself.

A long moment passed as Azusa processed this turn of events, then-

"Francois! Francois is so cute!"

"Heh. Problem solved." Ranma smirked, walking away.

xxx

"Of course, I also assumed that you'd go home or something."

"Nii-sama! Buy this for me!"

"No. Be satisfied with the dolly. And I'm not your brother."

Ranma was by now deeply regretting his momentary lapse into diplomacy. He definitely should have followed his first impulse, and just knocked the brat out.

"Oh my... a guest, Ranma-kun?"

"A tagalong. At this point I'm hoping that if I ignore her long enough, she'll go away."

"Nii-sama's being a meanie, Francois..."

There was a soft rumble.

"Ah... I'm hungry. Nii-sama-"

"No. No, no no. Find your own food, it's not my-"

"Oh my! Please come in miss, a friend of Ranma's is as good as family."

"Ka... Kasu... mi..." Ranma groaned out.

"I'll prepare an extra place for Ranma's friend. Excuse me."

Ranma twitched. Then his expression lightened as Akane turned the corner, in an obviously vile mood, grown viler as she noted his presence.

"You.... What are _you_ doing here?"

"Oho. My student has a lamentably short memory, it seems. We're occupying your spare room, if you've forgotten."

Akane just growled, apparently in no mood to hear reason.

"Hmm... looks like it's time for the next lesson. Come, Akane... attack me from whatever direction you wish."

"Fine by me! Raaagh!"

"Take this. Strike of the Gorgon!"

Ranma seemed to drift past Akane's wild blows.

"Ha... 'Gorgon', huh? It doesn't seem like your attack does anything... eh?"

"Au contraire, my foolish student. Listen closely... don't you feel any different?"

Akane paused. Now that it was mentioned... her hair felt heavier. Her eyes widened and she paled.

"Hohoho... I see you've realized the terror of the Gorgon Strike. Taking an opportunity to strike fear into the heart of one's opponent, by rapidly braiding live snakes into their hair!"

The snakes began hissing noisily as they started to come out of their daze, thrashing to escape.

"KYAAAAH!"

"Heh. It's all part of your training."

"Ranma-san, dinner."

"Ah, it's so yummy!"

"Hey... Don't start without me!"

"Get them off mee!"

xxx

A.N.

Plot has begun to move again... enough to try to run away on me. Ah well... things are starting to heat up a little. The problem, I think, will be keeping from bringing too many characters into the mix all at once.

In any case, working on picking out Ryoga's curse. Will probably be either the original piglet, or some sort of huge, vicious, monster of a boar. Depends on a great many factors, really.

As for what Ranma did to Shampoo... that remains a secret. Although I will say that it wasn't permamently damaging... in a physical sense, at least. It may well have mortally wounded her pride.


End file.
